**The Official 2008 NY Mets Thread** Lets Go Mets!!

[BlueWahooChambordDevil]

delsucko and duque are two guys i dont expect this from

piss hands i didnt expect to reach 100 games anyway

i guess its good that he gets his typical late april vacation out of the way now.........normally hes gone from late april until june........so this is really a non event to me

[UTVols2]

Wait til Johan the great has to have Tommy John surgery after about April and you will see a new river form from NY to VA from the tears of all Mets Fans and BWC and we will call it "The Johan" in his honor.

[BlueWahooChambordDevil]

Mets should consider Bonds

posted: Friday, March 7, 2008 | Feedback | Print Entry
filed under: MLB

In the midst of the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, it was Adlai Stevenson who raised the one option, among the many being considered, that nobody else wanted to talk about: capitulation. It was never seriously discussed, but was probably worth talking through, because Stevenson's words helped to define other alternatives; this was part of the thought process.

And thought process is why somebody within the Mets' organization should raise the one option that nobody probably wants to consider, but they should discuss, as they figure out ways to cope with the devastating wave of injuries -- to Moises Alou, and Carlos Delgado -- which has crippled their fragile lineup. That alternative is Barry Bonds.

Everybody knows the reasons why the Mets probably would never seriously consider Bonds. He is facing an indictment for perjury in a steroids-related case. His clubhouse presence in San Francisco was said by teammates to be stifling. Bonds in New York would be a circus, with every grimace and glower filling the front and back pages. Mets owner Fred Wilpon is image-conscious, and the signing of Bonds would draw the wrath of soccer moms and dads all over the tri-state area.

But when the Mets have their organizational conference call next week, somebody should make the case for signing Bonds.

No. 1: Among all of the alternatives the Mets will discuss, the acquisition of Bonds would be the only way the team would acquire a high-impact hitter without gutting a farm system already depleted by the Johan Santana and Brian Schneider trades. Landing Bonds would be a cash-only proposition. You pay and he plays, and hits, at an extraordinarily high level.

Last year, Bonds had an on-base percentage of .480. Only two members of the Mets came within 100 points of that last year -- David Wright, at .416, and Alou, at .392.

Bonds hit 28 homers last year, in 340 at-bats. Only Carlos Beltran (33) and Wright (30) had more homers.

His slugging percentage was .565. No Met matched that last season. His OPS of 1.045 was almost 100 points higher than any other Met player.

His defense, in his 44th year, is nothing short of horrendous. But is his defense really any worse than that of the 41-year-old Alou? Whether Alou was the left fielder, or Bonds, it would be Endy Chavez who would be in left field at the end of games.

He played in 126 games last year, and really can't be counted on for more than 100 games. But he could take Alou's place in the first month, and then share time thereafter, in something of a platoon, which would help to keep both aged outfielders healthy. In the games that Bonds doesn't start, could there possibly be a better late-inning option?

In this decade, he has been regarded as nothing short of a massive pain in the rear by many members of the Giants' management, for sure. But he would come to the Mets in a position of great humility, essentially needing them more than they need him. Wilpon and GM Omar Minaya and manager Willie Randolph could be blunt with Bonds: No entourage, no special rules, and if you're a problem, we're going to cut you.

There is the matter of image for the Mets. But keep in mind, this is not an organization that has run from the specter of steroids. The Mets are the organization that signed Guillermo Mota to a two-year deal after he was suspended for steroid use, and the organization of Scott Schoeneweis and others who are named in the Mitchell report (which makes the Mets about the same as every other organization, by the way).

The Mets would seem to match up with the Tigers for a trade, for Marcus Thames. Detroit needs relief help, someone like Joe Smith or Schoeneweis, and the Mets need an outfielder. Reed Johnson of the Blue Jays might make some sense. The Mets could talk about first-base help as well, someone like Kevin Millar. But the Mets can't trade for an impact bat unless they're willing to toss star prospect Fernando Martinez into the mix, and they can't -- and won't -- do that.

And somebody on the conference call might lay out how different the Mets would look in making a deal for a hitter like Thames -- he of the .278 on-base percentage, and .498 slugging average -- and a hitter like Bonds, whose presence would allow Randolph to use Delgado where he belongs now, in the sixth spot.

WITH THAMES
SS Jose Reyes
2B Luis Castillo
CF Carlos Beltran
3B David Wright
1B Carlos Delgado
LF Marcus Thames
RF Ryan Church
C Brian Schneider

WITH BONDS
SS Reyes
2B Castillo
CF Beltran
LF Bonds
3B Wright
1B Delgado
RF Church
C Schneider

It's worth discussing. The Mets are very interested in trading for Thames, writes Jon Paul Morosi, but the Tigers are interested in keeping him.

[sup-rbeast]

Any team with a chance should consider Bonds...he'd hit 60 again if he were a Yankee tho... [img]/LDPforum/ubbthreads/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif[/img]

[BlueWahooChambordDevil]

duque threw 60 picthes in a simulated game today and said he was pain free and hopes to make his ST debut this weekend

castillo was originally scheduled to play today but due to a wet field the team decided to hold him out and he said he will also be making his ST debut by the weekend

[1inStripes]

Couldn't you just say that Castillo and El Duque would get STD's this weekend? [img]/LDPforum/ubbthreads/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif[/img]

[BlueWahooChambordDevil]

mets and sawx are discussing angel pagan for coco crisp

[yankeebaseball]

Mets Blow
Yankees Rule


All this spring training mess never amounts to anything, the royals actually think they can win it all right now.

[BlueWahooChambordDevil]

mets blow??

just remember our bet

[sup-rbeast]

The Mets really do blow tho...